• The National Treasury had allocated Sh10 billion for the programme which is expected to run until June 30th this year.
• The third phase is said to be robust and will be implemented in over 900 informal settlements across all 47 counties.
Image: MERCY MUMO
Over 1.2 million youths who had applied to join the Kazi Mtaani programme will have to wait a bit longer to participate in the project as the government waits for the National Assembly to pass its Supplementary Budget.
Principal Secretary for Housing and Urban Development Charles Hinga told the Star that the National Treasury had allocated Sh10 billion for the programme which is expected to run until June 30th this year.
“Fingers crossed that Parliament passes the supplementary budget and we can resume Phase Three of Kazi Mtaani (KM) in earnest in January,” he said.
Currently, the National Assembly is on a short recess which started on December 2, 2020, and will resume on January 25, 2022.
During the last Mashujaa Day celebrations, President Uhuru Kenyatta promised that the National Hygiene Programme popularly known as the Kazi Mtaani would be continued because it had positively impacted the lives of hundreds of thousands of youths
The third phase is said to be robust and will be implemented in over 900 informal settlements across all 47 counties.
Consequently, the government in November launched the Kazi Mtaani Registration Website (KMR) where interested persons were to register for the program.
KMR is a mobile and web-based system developed by the Government of Kenya to register and manage Kazi Mtaani beneficiaries across the country
The online portal will ensure those interested be registered in a timely, transparent, and efficient manner that will be equitable across the board.
The web application will be used to register, process the data received from the mobile application, payments, and reports.
Image: MAUREEN KINYANJUI
At the end of the two-week registration process, at least 1.2 million youths had registered for the programmrame.
Nairobi County recorded the highest number of registrations with 179,000, followed by Kiambu 78,000 and Nakuru 60,000.
Elgeyo Marakwet recorded the lowest with 8,036, Lamu 8,105 and Samburu 9,679.
Earlier on, Hinga had advised that anyone seeking Kazi Mtaani jobs should be vaccinated against Covid-19.
The PS said youths will be required to show evidence of vaccination.
It was also revealed that youths will also be involved with other activities apart from the usual cutting grass and clearing of drainages.
The Government will enrol at least 3,400 youths in the Kazi Mtaani Phase Three programme to support malaria control efforts across the country.
“On Malaria army we have a program where we will train and equip you to spray pools of water to kill mosquitoes eggs and larva and fumigate homes. In some areas we will use drones to spray,” Hinga noted.
On construction, the PS highlighted that they will work either as a skilled (mason, plumber etc) or unskilled.
“You’ll work under a master builder, you’ll be trained (apprenticeship), you’ll get NITA Accredited and NCA Certified. After KM you’ll now be employable.,” Hinga added
The youths will also receive extensive training on life skills such as setting up businesses, HIV/Aids prevention, mental health and counselling, and basic skills in masonry and carpentry.
Kazi Mtaani is a national initiative that was launched in April 2020 to cushion the most vulnerable but able-bodied citizens living in informal settlements from the effects and response strategies of the Covid -19 pandemic.
The programme, which started with a budget of Sh10 billion, employed 283,210 youths in 900 informal settlements across the 47 counties has put food on the table of hundreds of thousands of Kenyans and enabled thousands of youths to start small thriving businesses.
It targeted residents of informal settlements who are above 18 years of age and below 35 years basically the youth who are unable to find work due to the disruption of normal economic activity by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The program has made a great impact on the youths lives as it has transformed their lives in all dimensions by creating job opportunities and this has helped reduce the crime rate in society.
Edited by D Tarus